Kent State University School of Theatre and Dance

Kent State Senior Ina Black Goes on the Road With 'Back to the Future' Musical Tour Kent State Senior Ina Black Goes on the Road With 'Back to the Future' Musical Tour | Kent State Today School of Theatre and Dance, Nationally Distinctive | Most soon-to-be college graduates are a bit nervous about finding that first post-college job. K...

Porthouse Theatre to kick off 2024 summer season with rock opera 'Jesus Christ Superstar' Porthouse Theatre's three-show summer season to start with "Jesus Christ Superstar," followed by "Nunsense," Annie," at open-air theater at Blossom.

Porthouse Theatre is seeking volunteers to usher for any show!

Sign-up at https://www.kent.edu/porthouse/volunteer

May Is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month: A Time for Celebration and Education In 1977, the U.S. government established a time to recognize Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders and their accomplishments.

The School of Theatre and Dance faculty and staff have been busy this semester! Faculty and staff’s contributions stand as a reminder of the College of the Art’s mission to positively impact communities. Here are some of their achievements and news.

School of Theatre and Dance Spring News | Kent State University School of Theatre and Dance Spring News | School of Theatre and Dance School of Theatre and Dance, College of the Arts | The School of Theatre and Dance faculty and staff have been busy this semester! Faculty and staff’s contributions stand as a reminder of the College of the Art’s mission to po...

Experience the intensity and welcoming space of Kent State University's Dance Division during a one-week summer dance program!

Participate in dance classes such as modern, contemporary and classical ballet, jazz, hip hop, musical theatre, yoga and tap. Attend a Porthouse Theatre performance and learn about injury and eating disorder prevention. Juniors and seniors can audition for the B.F.A./B.A. in Dance degree program during the summer program for early acceptance.

Register at https://bit.ly/3Q46EoC

Photography by Jennifer Zmuda. Choreography by Michael Uthoff

Aveena Sawyer, Porthouse Theatre and School of Theatre and Dance alumna, has been performing on Broadway as "The Boat That I Row" soloist in “A Beautiful Noise, The Neil Diamond Musical.” Recently, Terri Kent, artistic director of Porthouse Theatre, musical theatre coordinator and professor of acting and musical theatre, along with Jennifer Korecki, associate professor of musical theatre, visited Aveena on Broadway.

Read more at https://bit.ly/3y5AeUV

Porthouse Theatre

The School of Theatre and Dance is thrilled to announce its 2024-2025 season: "The Crucible," "Pride & Prejudice – The Musical," the Fall Faculty Dance Concert, "The Wiz," Spring Faculty Dance Concert and "Men on Boats."

Read more at the link below:
https://www.kent.edu/theatredance/news/school-theatre-and-dance-announces-2024-2025-main-stage-season

Calling all alumni! Updating your contact information ensures you’ll never miss out on exclusive Kent State University and School of Theatre and Dance news, special invitations and more.

Update your information by May 15 to be entered into a drawing to win a pair of 2024 season tickets to the Porthouse Theatre, valued at $150.

https://connect.kent.edu/register/theater-and-dance-update-form

"Although the script may be perceived as too preachy, Jacobs-Jenkins’ script emphasizes the collective, collaborative, and egalitarian approach to theatre-making that has been neglected in show business for centuries."

Dr. Yuko Kurahashi provides a review of "Everybody," written by Branden Jacob Jenkins and directed by Paul Hurley.

Read more at

Performative and Theatrical Allegory: Everybody Adapted  by  Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Kent State University School of Theatre and Dance’s production of Everybody, written by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and directed by Paul Hurley, offers a co…

Tickets are on sale now!

Single and group tickets are now available through the Performing Arts Box Office. New subscriptions are also available for purchase. Get your tickets now before they sell out!

Learn more and purchase tickets at https://www.kent.edu/porthouse/tickets

And now, without further ado, "Everybody."

Don't miss your chance to see "Everybody," running April 19-28. A modern riff on the fifteenth-century morality play "Everyman," this adaptation follows Everybody (chosen from amongst the cast by lottery at each performance) as they journey through life’s greatest mystery—the meaning of living.

Tickets are available at https://bit.ly/3UKgwHA

School of Theatre and Dance is closing its 2023-2024 season with "Everybody" running April 19-28 in Wright-Curtis Theatre.

A modern riff on the fifteenth-century morality play "Everyman," this adaptation follows Everybody (chosen from amongst the cast by lottery at each performance) as they journey through life’s greatest mystery—the meaning of living.

https://bit.ly/3PYcCay

Experience the intensity and welcoming space of Kent State University's Dance Division during a one-week summer dance program!

Participate in dance classes such as modern, contemporary and classical ballet, jazz, hip hop, musical theatre, yoga and tap. Attend a Porthouse Theatre performance and learn about injury and eating disorder prevention. Juniors and seniors can audition for the B.F.A./B.A. in Dance degree program during the summer program for early acceptance.

Register at https://www.kent.edu/theatredance/schedule-visit

Photography by Jennifer Zmuda. Choreography by Catherine Meredith and Samuel McIntosh

Join us for Discover Theatre and Dance Day on April 3! Receive information on dance, dance studies, musical theatre, theatre studies and design technology. You will tour school classrooms, studios and theatres, engage in a Q&A session and attend a class!

https://bit.ly/4985RtP

School of Theatre and Dance continues its 2023-2024 production season with Kent Dance Ensemble "On the Cusp." The concert will be presented in E. Turner Stump Theatre Fri., April 5 -7.

Read more at the link below. 🔗

Kent State University’s School of Theatre and Dance presents Kent Dance Ensemble "On the Cusp" April 5-7 | Kent State University Kent State University’s School of Theatre and Dance presents Kent Dance Ensemble "On the Cusp" April 5-7 | School of Theatre and Dance, College of the Arts | Kent State University’s School of Theatre and Dance continues its 2023-2024 production season with with Kent Dance Ensemble "On the Cusp."...

Porthouse Theatre is excited to reveal "Annie" as our third show this season!

With equal measures of pluck and positivity, little orphan Annie charms everyone's hearts despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930s New York City. Determined to find the parents who abandoned her years ago, Annie escapes to the wondrous world of NYC. In adventure after fun-filled adventure, Annie foils Miss Hannigan's evil machinations... and even befriends President Franklin Delano Roosevelt! She finds a new home and family in billionaire, Oliver Warbucks, his personal secretary, Grace Farrell, and a lovable mutt named Sandy.

Tickets and new subscriptions go on sale April 22, 2024. Current subscribers can renew their subscriptions until April 19, 2024. Check back on April 1 for a special show announcement!

We have a ton of stickers that students, staff, and campus orgs have donated! Please come down to the center and take some. They are a awesome way to show pride and look good while doing so! They can be found on the table right in the front of the center with all the pins. 🏳️‍🌈 ❤️

“I love Porthouse. It feels like home to me. I don’t perform as often as I used to or as often as I’d like to but the opportunity to work with Eric Van Baars AND to return to the Porthouse stage was too good an opportunity to pass up.”

Kent State and Porthouse Theatre alumna, Colleen Longshaw, is dusting off her habit this summer to star as Sister Mary Hubert, head of the novices, to the Mother Superior in “Nunsense". Colleen's last performance at Porthouse Theatre was in 2016 as Deloris in “Sister Act.”

Read more at https://bit.ly/3vd4EDl

Experience the intensity and welcoming space of Kent State University's Dance Division during a one-week summer dance program!

Participate in dance classes such as modern, contemporary and classical ballet, jazz, hip hop, musical theatre, yoga and tap. Attend a Porthouse Theatre performance and learn about injury and eating disorder prevention. Juniors and seniors can audition for the B.F.A./B.A. in Dance degree program during the summer program for early acceptance.

Register at https://commerce.cashnet.com/THDN

Photography by Jennifer Zmuda. Kent dancers in Catherine Meredith's 'Touch'.

The B.F.A. Student Dance Concert/Student Dance Festival: Reignite opens in one week! This student-produced dance concert is comprised of works showcasing our senior B.F.A. dance performance majors, as well as works choreographed by our junior B.A. dance majors. The concert is running in the Erdmann-Zucchero Blackbox Theatre from March 1-3.

March 1 at 7:30 p.m.
March 2 at 7:30 p.m.
March 3 at 2:00 p.m.

For Amy Fritsche, associate professor of acting and musical theater, “Rent” holds a special place in her heart as the musical inspired her to take a left turn in her life and pursue an education in musical theater. Fritsche lived in New York in the ‘90s and could relate a lot to the musical when she first saw it.

'Rent' Performances Feel 'Like Home' for Director Amy Fritsche | Kent State University 'Rent' Performances Feel 'Like Home' for Director Amy Fritsche | Kent State Today Arts & Culture, Diverse Kent State | “525,600 minutes - how do you measure, measure a year?” These lyrics will fill the E. Turner Stump Theatre this weekend as the run of “Rent” finishes up on Sun, Feb. 25. Amy...

Today, we welcomed four high schools to a matinee performance of "Rent." The show runs through Feb. 25 in E. Turner Stump Theatre. Get your tickets at https://bit.ly/3UKgwHA

La Vie Boheme!

"Rent" opens tonight and will run through February 25. Based loosely on Puccini's "La Boheme," Jonathan Larson's "Rent" follows a year in the life of a group of impoverished young artists and musicians struggling to survive and create in New York's Lower East Side, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS.

Get your tickets at https://bit.ly/3UKgwHA

Experience the intensity and welcoming space of Kent State University's Dance Division during a one-week summer dance program!

Participate in dance classes such as modern, contemporary and classical ballet, jazz, hip hop, musical theatre, yoga and tap. Attend a Porthouse Theatre performance and learn about injury and eating disorder prevention. Juniors and seniors can audition for the B.F.A./B.A. in Dance degree program during the summer program for early acceptance.

Register at https://bit.ly/3SIttir

Photography by Jennifer Zmuda. Choreography by Michael Uthoff

Audition for a summer with the Joffrey Ballet School!

Joffrey Ballet will be hosting auditions at Kent State for their 2024 Summer Intensives! They will be accepting dancers for ballet and jazz contemporary.

Register at https://bit.ly/47GcjHv

Congratulations to Tony Hardin, Director of the School of Theater and Dance, on being named a 2024 United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) Fellow! 🎉

To USITT, the Fellows are members who are leaders in their craft or field and are an indispensable resource in continuing the work of the Institute, working together as peers to support the Institute in its advancement, fundraising, and outreach efforts.

Read more at https://www.kent.edu/theatredance/news/tony-hardin-named-usitt-fellow